User talk:RoySmith/Archive 37

Sandesh9822
I disagree with your analysis here, given these accounts are between "possilikely and likely", i.e. same persons. You also said that "neither of the suspected socks has edited in the past 3-5 weeks", which might have been correct at that time but not anymore because one of them is still editing and ultimately both users are engaging in tag-teaming on the same article. Basically, they are WP:NOTHERE.

How they can be different persons? Aman Kumar Goel (Talk) 18:29, 7 January 2021 (UTC)


 * , I took another look. Unfortunately, I'm at pretty much the same point I was earlier, which is that while it does seem likely, I'm not sure enough to block them.  I try to be conservative about blocking; if in doubt, I don't block, and that's where I am now.  -- RoySmith (talk) 18:53, 7 January 2021 (UTC)


 * I don't know if there is really a room for doubt. You may want to reopen the SPI so that other clerks can also take a look? Aman Kumar Goel (Talk) 19:27, 7 January 2021 (UTC)
 * , My suggestion is to keep an eye on things and if additional evidence comes to light, feel free to open a new investigation. But, please note, you'll need additional evidence, just reiterating that you don't agree with the previous decision isn't going to be enough.  -- RoySmith (talk) 19:44, 7 January 2021 (UTC)

Sock posts at Talk:Cambodian New Year
Hi RoySmith. Do you think the posts added to Talk:Cambodian New Year by should be removed or collapsed? They're more of a rhetorical rant than a post seeking a response per se (at least in my opinion), but the main problem is that the account was blocked as a SOCK and the posts might fall under WP:EVADE. I thought about adding Csp, but perhaps outright removal would be better per WP:TPG. -- Marchjuly (talk) 23:01, 7 January 2021 (UTC)
 * , The general rule is to not remove anything from a talk page unless it's actually offensive, disruptive, or threatening, etc. This edit might be considered WP:UNCIVIL, but I don't think it rises to the level where it needs to be deleted. -- RoySmith (talk) 23:27, 7 January 2021 (UTC)
 * Understand. -- Marchjuly (talk) 06:13, 8 January 2021 (UTC)

More evidence, tagging
Leaving it here since the SPI case has already been closed. See, if you open that reference it's a self-published manual written by "Adhithya Kiran", who is User:Adhithya Kiran Chekavar. Othayoth shankaran has not yet been tagged with Adhithya Kiran Chekavar. User is now logged-out editing too on the same articles, also violating a topic ban. 157.44.176.17 (talk) 08:53, 26 December 2020 (UTC)
 * Thanks for your note.  was blocked for various forms of disruptive behavior, but not specifically identified as a sock.  That's why they're not tagged.  It's certainly possible they are indeed a sock, but at this point, the effort to figure that out exceeds the value.  If there's other block evasion going on, the best thing would be to open a new SPI report, so all the information stays in one place. -- RoySmith (talk) 14:04, 26 December 2020 (UTC)
 * Can you remove that promotional spam reference from Kalaripayattu? It is cited in the lead and in History (his claim derived from the name of Hindu deity Khaloorika Bhagavathy need removal) and Further reading section. 157.46.168.56 (talk) 10:28, 27 December 2020 (UTC)
 * That seems like a content issue which you should discuss on the article's talk page. -- RoySmith (talk) 13:05, 27 December 2020 (UTC)
 * Oh, I forgot you were the page-protected admin and you yourself cannot get involved. No worries. 157.46.173.91 (talk) 15:02, 27 December 2020 (UTC)
 * Personal attack and racial slur (those logs are now stikethrough). He don't know what caste am I or I have a caste at all. But still he invoked the name of a lower-caste to insult me, also disparaging them. Insult against Pulaya, a Scheduled Caste is punishable by law, he also used the word "dalit" in a derogatory manner, which is banned by the government. I can even file a case in the cyber cell. This range should be blocked--157.44.211.16 (talk) 07:07, 29 December 2020 (UTC)
 * New SPI filed. 157.44.160.244 (talk) 06:32, 9 January 2021 (UTC)

T271624
Can you add me to viewers on T271624? — xaosflux  Talk 22:09, 9 January 2021 (UTC)
 * , Oh, I didn't realize opening it as a security issue would limit who could view it. I don't know how to add you, but I'll try to figure it out.  -- RoySmith (talk) 22:21, 9 January 2021 (UTC)
 * OK. I've added you. Ping me if that didn't work as expected.  -- RoySmith (talk) 22:23, 9 January 2021 (UTC)
 * I'd like to view it as well if you're comfortable with that. Johnuniq (talk) 22:23, 9 January 2021 (UTC)
 * Done. -- RoySmith (talk) 22:26, 9 January 2021 (UTC)
 * TY! — xaosflux  Talk 01:21, 10 January 2021 (UTC)

Tech News: 2021-02
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Joloimpat
I am not enthusiastic about blocking a /20 either; what about a partial for starters? It would limit the damage. He does enjoy editing exactly the same pages every time. It would also limit my ability to recognize him when (not if) he comes back, but that is less important. Elizium23 (talk) 16:15, 11 January 2021 (UTC)
 * If you could identify a reasonably small set of pages that would benefit from this, I'll be happy to look into that. -- RoySmith (talk) 16:51, 11 January 2021 (UTC)
 * Presidency of Rodrigo Duterte
 * List of current Philippine provincial governors
 * List of mayors of Metro Manila
 * 2020 in the Philippines
 * List of canonically crowned images
 * Beatifications of Pope Pius XII
 * List of people beatified by Pope John XXIII
 * List of people beatified by Pope Paul VI
 * List of people beatified by Pope John Paul II
 * List of people beatified by Pope Benedict XVI
 * List of people beatified by Pope Francis
 * List of people declared venerable by Pope John XXIII
 * List of people declared venerable by Pope Paul VI
 * List of people declared venerable by Pope John Paul II
 * List of people declared venerable by Pope Benedict XVI
 * List of people declared venerable by Pope Francis
 * So what I'd like to know is - are partial blocks accomplished by article name or by reference? I've a mind to rename one of those articles, so let's keep it in mind if he's blocked from it. Elizium23 (talk) 17:55, 11 January 2021 (UTC)
 * , Hmmm. My understanding is that partial blocks are expensive to implement, so I was thinking more like 2 or 3 pages.  Indeed, per Partial_blocks, there's a limit of 10.  If the list is this long, partial block may not be the right tool.  Partial block or semi-protection might still be called for, but for now, let's just keep an eye on this and see what happens.
 * I had to look it up, but it appears that partial blocks follow page moves. -- RoySmith (talk) 18:44, 11 January 2021 (UTC)
 * Okay, if I had to name three I would say: List of current Philippine provincial governors, List of people beatified by Pope Francis, and List of people declared venerable by Pope Francis. I would wish to add List of canonically crowned images if it could not be protected which I have a request currently queued. Elizium23 (talk) 18:58, 11 January 2021 (UTC)
 * , OK, I've done the three . If he comes back, please open a new SPI report. -- RoySmith (talk) 20:38, 11 January 2021 (UTC)
 * Okay, if I had to name three I would say: List of current Philippine provincial governors, List of people beatified by Pope Francis, and List of people declared venerable by Pope Francis. I would wish to add List of canonically crowned images if it could not be protected which I have a request currently queued. Elizium23 (talk) 18:58, 11 January 2021 (UTC)
 * , OK, I've done the three . If he comes back, please open a new SPI report. -- RoySmith (talk) 20:38, 11 January 2021 (UTC)

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Help with sockpuppets
Hello there. You may remember this sockpuppet case Sockpuppet investigations/Frank marine/Archive, which I was involved with in 2019. A quick look at Thai army related articles still presents many problems:
 * Similar edits to sockmater made by this IP
 * I don't think is a sockpuppet, but has shown a similar style of editing to Thai army related articles.
 * And another IP.

I don't know what's going on here but a look at the articles in question (Royal Thai Marine Corps, Royal Thai Army to name a couple), present a number of problems most notably unreferenced content and long lists that have little sense or relevance to the article. I would appreciate help with this matter, especially as I think the best course of action would be to go to the administrators' noticeboard or somewhere else with more editor involvement but I would prefer another thought on this. (pinging as they were involved as well). Kind regards, Willbb234Talk (please &#123;&#123;ping&#125;&#125; me in replies) 00:07, 16 January 2021 (UTC)
 * Hello Willbb234. The IP you mentioned above, hasn't edited since 15 July 2020, while  has only three edits. And nobody has tried contacting User:Gav the Meerkat to discuss their edits. It is premature (in my opinion) to reopen the SPI case. You may be right that Royal Thai Army could use some improvement. The WP:MILHIST project is quite active; you might ask them for suggestions. I am glad you are still interested in these articles. Thanks, EdJohnston (talk) 00:27, 16 January 2021 (UTC)

Tech News: 2021-03
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Editing news 2021 #1
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Re: Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/Sheldonium
Okay, that makes more sense, but given that the discussion that I initiated (the one going in the direction of another sockmaster) was already rendered moot, as we reverted to the analysis that another user brought up independently, I don't think it's a case of a single person being the judge and the jury. --Joy &#91;shallot&#93; (talk) 19:22, 26 January 2021 (UTC)

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Tech News: 2021-05
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Problems
 * IPv6 addresses were written in lowercase letters in diffs. This caused dead links since Special:Contributions only accepted uppercase letters for the IPs. This has been fixed.

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Massachusetts RMV Scandal aka Randolph 7 Case
The 2019-2020 Massachusetts RMV scandal has become a hot topic again after a sudden & controversial change in MassDOT leadership. I am willing to start a new RMV scandal page but fear it will be removed. The 2020 Stephanie Pollack page was setup by a Northeastern student. The student freely mentions this on Twitter. COI. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Strala00 (talk • contribs) 02:40, 1 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , It's unclear what you are requesting. If you want to recreate a page and you're not sure the new page will be accepted, the best general advice I can give is to write it as a draft and submit it for review. -- RoySmith (talk) 03:07, 1 February 2021 (UTC)

Ok. I'll send a draft later this month — Preceding unsigned comment added by Strala00 (talk • contribs) 01:21, 2 February 2021 (UTC)

Sockpuppet investigations
Hi Roy. What do you exactly mean with "If Qiushufang is uploading copyrighted material on enwiki, they can be blocked for that." The user has uploaded hundreds of copyright violations on Commons and then included in articles on enwiki. It is curious that he is still allowed to edit here, while he has been long blocked on Commons for his behaviour. What evidence do you need and where should I present it? Gun Powder Ma (talk) 21:13, 4 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Hi, and thanks for your note. Commons is a separate project from enwiki.  Issues about what they upload to commons need to be raised there.  They have their own policies, admins, checkusers, and investigation processes.
 * The other part of the answer is that on enwiki, we only block accounts to prevent ongoing disruption, per WP:BLOCKPREVENTATIVE. Since  Gunman Dan hasn't edited on enwiki since last August, there's really no point in blocking them here. -- RoySmith (talk) 00:47, 5 February 2021 (UTC)
 * The other part of the answer is that on enwiki, we only block accounts to prevent ongoing disruption, per WP:BLOCKPREVENTATIVE. Since  Gunman Dan hasn't edited on enwiki since last August, there's really no point in blocking them here. -- RoySmith (talk) 00:47, 5 February 2021 (UTC)

Curry
Hey Roy, I just noticed you blocked TeluguWikieditor as an ArthurCurry70 sock. I noticed that Varudu Kaavalenu, which had previously been created by TeluguWikieditor, was recreated by Hyderabadi Wikipedian. Hyderabad is a Telugu-speaking city. Naturally, bells went off. The two versions of the article are different, however. Interaction report here. What do you think? I'm feeling like it's a sock. Cyphoidbomb (talk) 17:34, 5 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Well, as I wrote in the SPI, if not sock, then certainly UPE, so I don't think we're going too far wrong, which I'd say certainly still applies here. The whole Indian cinema area really is just one big sock drawer, isn't it?  If you file an SPI, ping me and I'll look into it more.  -- RoySmith (talk) 18:58, 5 February 2021 (UTC)

Tech News: 2021-06
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Help for review of friend's account
Hey user:RoySmith Can you help me with reviewing a blocked account. It is of my friend who has been blocked due to some misunderstanding that he is a paid editor. Please feel free to read his explanation. user:Skhandelwal060806August01 (talk) 17:45, 10 February 2021 (UTC)

SPI
Hi. You identified a sockpuppet of Lordpermaximum. This account has recently been created. In a clear provocation, their user page is copied and pasted from my own. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Contributions/Adhs791 NEDOCHAN (talk) 08:26, 11 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Hmmm, I see the user page copy, but what's the connection to Lordpermaximum? -- RoySmith (talk) 15:35, 11 February 2021 (UTC)


 * This is their edit (the exact bee in their bonnet) https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nick_Diaz&diff=prev&oldid=1006127238NEDOCHAN (talk) 16:45, 11 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , I'm still not seeing how they're connected to Lordpermaximum, but blocked as WP:NOTHERE. -- RoySmith (talk) 18:02, 11 February 2021 (UTC)


 * Thank you both for reaching that conclusion and sparing me from the angst of going through the process. It's a rather unpleasant thing and NOTHERE is a fine and reasonable summation.NEDOCHAN (talk) 19:02, 11 February 2021 (UTC)

House Church
Hey there, I saw that you just commented on House xChurch stuff on the 10th. This article was one of his favourite targets and now has sprung up there. This editor in particular seems to be singularly focussed on that article, but that could be one of several open accounts. Just a thought. Regards, Cyphoidbomb (talk) 21:00, 11 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Thanks. I've blocked them and asked for CU to confirm. -- RoySmith (talk) 21:22, 11 February 2021 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/Marioluigi187
Hi. I saw you archived Sockpuppet investigations/Marioluigi187 - there was an unanswered question about whether or not the accounts were indeed being used improperly. Would you mind restoring it? Thanks, --DannyS712 (talk) 22:50, 12 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , I've backed it out. -- RoySmith (talk) 23:15, 12 February 2021 (UTC)

Tech News: 2021-07
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Problems
 * There were problems with recent versions of MediaWiki. Because the updates caused problems the developers rolled back to an earlier version. Some updates and new functions will come later than planned.
 * Some services will not work for a short period of time from 07:00 UTC on 17 February. There might be problems with new short links, new translations, new notifications, adding new items to your reading lists or recording email bounces. This is because of database maintenance.

Changes later this week
 * Octicons-sync.svg The new version of MediaWiki will be on test wikis and MediaWiki.org from . It will be on non-Wikipedia wikis and some Wikipedias from . It will be on all wikis from (calendar).

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Repeat sock/vandal
At this SPI case, you had asked to be notified if the disruption resumed, as the article had been temporarily protected. The pp expired 2 days ago and the same edits started up again right after. I have requested pp again. (FYI) Cheers - wolf  07:32, 16 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Thanks for the ping. I see somebody else already got there to extend the protection, so we're good for a while. -- RoySmith (talk) 18:38, 16 February 2021 (UTC)

SPI procedural merge
Hi RoySmith, should Sockpuppet investigations/KIENGIR/Archive be merged into Sockpuppet investigations/Stubes99, per the outcome? I've tagged the sock, and assume keeping all cases on the same SPI page helps with tracking them. CMD (talk)


 * CMD, thanks for your note. I'm going to unarchive it, and follow up on the SPI page.  -- RoySmith (talk) 02:47, 17 February 2021 (UTC)


 * Apologies for using the wrong input in the tag. Diannaa has corrected it, so I believe this can be re-closed to slightly reduce the backlog. CMD (talk) 03:53, 17 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , No worries, and thanks again for pointing out the problem. If I might suggest, however, it would be best to leave tagging to the SPI clerks.  Sometimes it gets a bit complicated. -- RoySmith (talk) 14:57, 17 February 2021 (UTC)
 * No worries, I understood the pointed talkpage message. It does seem however that the whole area is a bit understaffed. CMD (talk) 15:11, 17 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , On the understaffed part, you are 100% right there. We can use all the help we can get (and I certainly appreciate you pitching in).  It's just that applying the final SPI tags is one of the more technical parts of the process with some nuances that take a while to figure out.  That's why I suggested leaving the tagging to the clerks. -- RoySmith (talk) 15:15, 17 February 2021 (UTC)

CU
Hey, RoySmith. Hope you're well. I filed another Sockpuppet investigations/JohnGotten a few days ago. Did the CU show all linked accounts or did it investigate only the the link between Moggein and JohnGotten? I think that there may be a few other accounts.--Maleschreiber (talk) 16:27, 17 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Hi. The case has been archived, so responding here.  I'm going to have to defer to ; he did the CU checks, and so is in a better position to say how far that investigation went.  More generally, if there's other accounts you suspect, the best thing would be to open another SPI report. -- RoySmith (talk) 16:47, 17 February 2021 (UTC)

Mistake?
Hey there, re: this, you mean TeluguWikieditor, not Ab207, right? Cyphoidbomb (talk) 00:08, 19 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Actually, no. I was thinking about Ab207 from the 13 February 2021 report.  But, the CU folks will have much better insight into this. -- RoySmith (talk) 01:23, 19 February 2021 (UTC)
 * Well from my perspective, Ab is a participating member of the community. I would hope that compelling behavioural evidence exists beyond mere intersections. We all have our instincts, so I don't want to step on yours, but I've interacted with them a number of times, vs. no times with any of these others. Tarunq and the other are totally silent operators. See also this discussion. And if I've been part of a long-con, I'll take that as a lesson. Cyphoidbomb (talk) 01:40, 19 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Thanks for the additional info. I haven't done an in-depth look, just enough to get suspicious and ask for CU.  If you've interacted with them over the long term, I put more weight in your hunches than mine. -- RoySmith (talk) 01:48, 19 February 2021 (UTC)
 * Well, now based on the CU, it looks like it could be possible. Hyderabadi is someone who has communicated with me, so it's possible that I've been part of the long-con. Yet another reason why more eyes are always better. Cyphoidbomb (talk) 01:55, 19 February 2021 (UTC)

Mentioned one of your SPI closing comments
There is currently a discussion at Administrators' noticeboard/Incidents regarding an issue with which you may have been involved. The thread is Delfield's harrassement. Thank you. I don't think your involvement is necessary, I'm just letting you know as I referred to this closing comment of yours [//en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Sockpuppet_investigations/Launebee&diff=983660836&oldid=978547902] of an old SPI as unfortunately one of the participants doesn't see to have taken the advice on board instead thinking it just needs someone to evaluate the closed SPI. Nil Einne (talk) 15:35, 22 February 2021 (UTC)

Sock tp
Hi, just wanted to make sure you knew that was my post in the first place. FYI - wolf  21:18, 22 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Thanks for your note. I assume you're talking about User talk:Elladhtis?  Yes, I know that.  I appreciate that you're trying to help, but the general rule is to leave other people's user talk pages alone, other than to send them messages. -- RoySmith (talk) 21:26, 22 February 2021 (UTC)
 * Not so much trying to help, I just removed my own post, which I'm allowed to do, so not sure why you keep undoing that. - wolf  23:28, 22 February 2021 (UTC)

Tech News: 2021-08
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Recent changes
 * The visual editor will now use MediaSearch to find images. You can search for images on Commons in the visual editor when you are looking for illustrations. This is to help editors find better images.
 * Octicons-tools.svg The syntax highlighter now works with more languages: Futhark, Graphviz/DOT, CDDL and AMDGPU.

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 * Editing a timeline might have removed all text from it. This was because of a bug and has been fixed. You might need to edit the timeline again for it to show properly.

Changes later this week
 * Octicons-sync.svg The new version of MediaWiki will be on test wikis and MediaWiki.org from . It will be on non-Wikipedia wikis and some Wikipedias from . It will be on all wikis from (calendar).

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 * Octicons-tools.svg There is a user group for developers and users interested in working on Wikimedia wikis with the Rust programming language. You can join or tell others who want to make your wiki better in the future.

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00:16, 23 February 2021 (UTC)

Thursday Feb 25: ONLINE Black Wiki History Month at the Schomburg Center
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--Wikimedia New York City Team 07:23, 23 February 2021 (UTC)

Precious anniversary
--Gerda Arendt (talk) 07:50, 23 February 2021 (UTC)

You've got mail

 * , It's unfortunate you waited this long to send it, because the master in the case went stale a few days ago. But he with the crazy hair already declined CU due to a lack of on-wiki evidence, so it probably wouldn't have made any difference.  They're all blocked as UPE anyway, so it doesn't seem particularly urgent to figure out if they're also socks. -- RoySmith (talk) 01:00, 25 February 2021 (UTC)
 * Oh yes... he with the crazy hair. ;-)  ~Oshwah~  (talk) (contribs)   02:46, 25 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , thanks for letting me know. I should have informed you earlier. But anyways as you said, the primary work was done. Lhiroshima (talk) 08:11, 25 February 2021 (UTC)

You've got mail

 * , here's something you may find actionable and interesting. Lhiroshima (talk) 09:33, 25 February 2021 (UTC)

Cyprus SPI
Hi RoySmith, per your comment at Sockpuppet investigations/Cypriot Chauvinist, notifying you (here as case is now closed) that the editor in question is back with IP, including going back to Cypriot National Guard. (FYI pinging FDW777 as well.) CMD (talk) 14:24, 25 February 2021 (UTC)
 * , Thanks, I've added a partial block and updated the SPI. -- RoySmith (talk) 14:55, 25 February 2021 (UTC)

On second though, re Antagonist
On second thought (I don't know why this didn't occur to me before), it would make sense to turn on Pending Changes for Antagonist. Then we'd have the benefit of establishing the IP user's identity through the usual pattern while preventing the user's changes from being publicly visible. Largoplazo (talk) 16:46, 27 February 2021 (UTC)

I just submitted a request at WP:RPP. Largoplazo (talk)

The Signpost: 28 February 2021
 * Read this Signpost in full * Single-page * Unsubscribe * MediaWiki message delivery (talk) 21:30, 28 February 2021 (UTC)

Tech News: 2021-09
Latest tech news from the Wikimedia technical community. Please tell other users about these changes. Not all changes will affect you. Translations are available.

Recent changes
 * Wikis using the Growth team tools can now show the name of a newcomer's mentor anywhere through a magic word. This can be used for welcome messages or userboxes.
 * A new version of the VideoCutTool is now available. It enables cropping, trimming, audio disabling, and rotating video content. It is being created as part of the developer outreach programs.

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 * There was a problem with the job queue. This meant some functions did not save changes and mass messages were delayed. This did not affect wiki edits.
 * Some editors may not be logged in to their accounts automatically in the latest versions of Firefox and Safari.

Changes later this week
 * Octicons-sync.svg The new version of MediaWiki will be on test wikis and MediaWiki.org from . It will be on non-Wikipedia wikis and some Wikipedias from . It will be on all wikis from (calendar).

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19:06, 1 March 2021 (UTC)